The most recognizable scooter brand in the world is going electric. Vespa will make an all-electric scooter to be sold sometime in the latter half of 2017. The news was announced by Vespa’s parent company, Piaggio, two days ahead of the Esposizione Internazionale Ciclo e Motociclo (EICMA), or the Milan Motorcycle Show.

Piaggio published a photo of a concept version of the electrified two-wheeler, which you can see above. It’s called the Vespa Elettrica, and it has a stark metal body — gasoline-powered Vespas are made out of steel, for what it’s worth — with electric blue accents. (I think the combination looks gorgeous, so here’s hoping most of it translates to the final version.) Piaggio says it will share more details later in the week at EICMA, but for now this is all we have. No pricing, no specs, just 800 pixels by 533 pixels and a few grandiose statements.

I’m as far from a scooter buff as you’ll find, and I’ve never driven a motorcycle. But I had a blast when with Mahindra’s connected electric scooter at this year’s CES, and I’ve spent the better part of 2016 reminiscing on that experience. It was less capable than a typical scooter (the GenZe 2.0 is speed-limited to 30 miles per hour so that you don’t need a motorcycle license), but it was still so fun to drive, and I hated giving it back.

Vespa sounds like it’s planning to take the Elettrica in a similar “connected scooter” direction, promising “technological and innovative connectivity solutions.” But all I can think about right now is taking it out on the road. Guess it’s time to start practicing for that license test.

- Via: Gizmodo

- Source: Piaggio